Edwards Lifesciences Corp., an Irvine heart valve maker, said Thursday that it will develop a new plant in Utah.
Edwards said that it will open a plant in Draper, Utah, which is half way between Salt Lake and Provo.
Edwards was looking for a new plant because it has outgrown its current site in Midvale, Utah, a Salt Lake suburb.
Edwards has projected that it will add more than 1,000 jobs in manufacturing, business and engineering in Utah over the life of a 15-year financial incentive period.
Edwards received $11.5 million in financial incentives from the state of Utah.
The company said it planned to retain its current 228-person Utah manufacturing workforce and transfer those jobs from Midvale to Draper in the first half of 2010.
The device maker also received a $3 million financial incentive from the city of Draper.
Edwards makes tissue-based replacement heart valves and other products used to treat heart conditions.
The company is in a major clinical trial for Sapien, a replacement heart valve that can be implanted without major surgery with an eye toward U.S. regulatory approval in late 2011.
